


I Hate You

by Kira_Dattei



Series: Developing Relationship Kinktober 2018 [20]
Category: No. 6 - All Media Types
Genre: AO3 FB Challenge, Canon - Anime, Canon Compliant, Developing Relationship, Jealousy, M/M, Nezumi is Overprotective, Shion is Oblivious
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-20
Updated: 2018-10-20
Packaged: 2019-08-05 01:48:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16358339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kira_Dattei/pseuds/Kira_Dattei
Summary: Shion has always been horrible about knowing when someone has any interest in him. It was good for him that Nezumi was better about it and was all too willing to show how much he wouldn't stand for others making a pass at his partner.





	I Hate You

**Author's Note:**

> Day 20 (holy cow!) of the Developing Relationship Kinktober! Coming down to the wire on completely succeeding with Kinktober and mind blown with how close I am.

That asshole was touching Shion again.

Nezumi glared at the back of the guy's, Okuda's head, not caring at all that it wasn’t going to do him any good since he hasn’t looked toward Nezumi once since arriving. Obviously it was a conscious effort, too, because everyone else had greeted him and would just happen to look toward him randomly, curious about him if nothing else.

The first time Nezumi had become aware of Okuda, another member of the team Shion was working with on about half a dozen projects, had been about two weeks ago when he'd gone with Shion to his different sites. He’d been curious about what a day working away from the office looked like for Shion and the other man was only too happy to let him tag along. After all, to Shion it meant more time with Nezumi - who was once again working up a reputation acting all throughout No. 6 so he was getting busier – so there was no downside in his mind.

It had gone pretty well at first, Nezumi following at a casual distance as Shion travelled to a few different sites and met up with the teams overseeing the projects, his role one of collaboration at the point each one was at. He maintained all the records of progress and any changes made throughout development, compiling it all together as I they could continue improving the process of No. 6's growth.

He'd obviously also saved the most complex project for last since they spent the most time at that site. There was a difference in Shion's role in this team as well as her was more active in surveying the land than before. Nezumi figured if made sense considering Shion's education major being in ecology and this looked to be a plot for farmland further within No. 6 than the others already in use, being more accessible to what was the West District and still primarily housed people who had lived there before, though with better accommodations.

The asshole had been there, someone involved more with the funding side of the project, sticking his ugly face in to tell them how much something would cost. And he’d picked his spot right next to Shion and hadn’t budged from there the whole time.

Nezumi thought it was a miracle he lasted the three hours they'd been there without stabbing the guy.

Instead, he’d made his presence a little more noticeable, not something he usually did but was entirely capable of pulling off easily. He was a performer, after all, and people had been curious about him all day, Shion excusing him with a vague reason for him being there.

Shion didn’t tell them he was in a relationship with Nezumi, who didn't really care. It wasn't their business and Shion was just keeping personally details private and separate from work – an old habit from his working days in old No. 6 – but it also meant that asshole could not get the hint that Shion was happily unavailable. Nezumi would move in close to Shion often, Shion accepting his presence immediately and usually with a warm smile unlike what he gave anyone else, but it still wasn’t enough for Okuda to back off. No, he still moved in closer than he needed to to talk to Shion, then let his eyes wander in appreciation over Shion's lithe body when he turned away.

It was infuriating and Nezumi couldn’t see them away from the site fast enough once they finished up.

Shion likely noticed something wrong, but hadn’t asked, likely because Nezumi's mood improved quickly enough.

A week later and he didn’t think he’d get over it as quickly. Partly because the guy was in Shion's home and that was more dangerous to Nezumi. Shion welcomed the guy easily enough into his home and would do so again, not noticing that the guy could be dangerous to have around.

It didn't help that Nezumi didn't know what side of the wall Okuda had come from: if it was outside, he could easily be the kind that Nezumi had worked hard to keep Shion from. And Nezumi would _not_ have all the effort he put into protecting Shion four years ago from that kind only to have it ruined now.

Nezumi had spent the night so he’d already been there when the team started showing up. It hadn’t been the first time they'd worked out of Shion's apartment like this, so Nezumi just grabbed a book and curled up in a chair they'd put in the far corner of the living room, keeping an ear on things but mostly letting Shion do his own thing.

Until Okuda had shown up and then Nezumi had stopped paying passive attention and used the book as a cover for keeping a close eye on the guy. And he wasn’t giving Nezumi any reason to be less suspicious. Shion was sitting at the table and Okuda would find every excuse he could to move in to Shion’s side, place a hand on his shoulder and lean in close to talk to him.

And Nezumi had caught the few aborted reaches the asshole made toward Shion’s neck, the young man in a t-shirt with a low collar instead of the shirts he usually wore for work that were high enough to cover part of his scar. Nezumi saw how the exposed skin was enticing to Okuda and he was just barely keeping his fucking hands off.

But Shion was Shion and he didn’t notice shit. He didn’t see the looks. The light touches were dismissed as people working in close quarters.

Nezumi was happy when they started wrapping things up and the team started gathering their materials up and leaving one at a time, everyone speaking with Shion one last time and establishing what they were doing next. But it was obvious Okuda had already passed how long he needed to be there, finding one excuse after another to be the last one.

Did he actually forget Nezumi was there or did he just not care?

Shion, being ever the appropriate host, walked with Okuda to the door with the other remaining team member, the woman leaving easily so only Okuda remained.

Nezumi set the book off to the side and stood, walking across the room and into view of the door, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall to watch Okuda switch gears to be much more obvious.

“You really are quite impressive, Shion,” he was saying. “You have such a strong reputation within No. 6 that I thought you would have difficulty living up to the hype. But you have not disappointed.”

Shion gave him a polite smile, his cheeks flushing a little at the compliments. “Thank you. I appreciate the compliment. There are still times I feel as though I’m floundering to get things right, but it has gotten much easier as I gain more experience.”

“No. 6 has much to thank you for. I just feel so honored to be working with you now.”

“Everyone on the team is the best we have to offer. They are well-practiced by now and I don’t think we'll have any difficulty in finishing off this set of projects successfully.” Shion was deflecting the attention, making it not completely about him and Nezumi had to hold back a smile at him doing so.

Shion was proud of the people he worked with and was always looking for the opportunity to get citizens to look at the whole team and not just his familiar face and history.

Okuda gave a smile, Nezumi becoming more suspicious at the expression and standing up straight, lowering his arms to his side’s and wishing he had a knife on him. He was to the point that he didn’t care if it made Shion mad, he wasn’t going to let this guy just think he could do whatever he wanted because he was attracted to Shion.

Sure, Shion could be dangerous, but it took too much to get him there and Nezumi was worried he wouldn’t even get there because of who this guy was: a coworker and someone important to Shion’s work.

“You know, I’m not quite ready to call it a day. You wanna go find someplace to eat? Continue our day in a less formal manner?” he asked in a low, inviting voice that Nezumi had heard and used plenty of times, not so much with Shion anymore since other tones worked best with him. But it had been an easy way to tease Shion four years ago.

Nezumi was done with subtlety, especially as he saw Shion look confused and then a little panicked, probably not knowing what he was supposed to do about this. So, Nezumi stepped up behind Shion, reached up to brush his fingers along the scar where it rose up above the collar of his shirt on the left side before resting his palm along the back of Shion's neck, the ends of white hair lying over the back of his hand.

Shion turned toward him at the touch, giving Nezumi a curious but suspicious look. He knew Nezumi well and apparently wasn’t going to assume this was him just being friendly.

“He’s not interested,” Nezumi declared. He wasn’t going to give this asshole the chance to ignore him anymore, not about Shion.

The guy shot Nezumi an irritated look, which Nezumi just lifted an amused eyebrow at. Inukashi was more intimidating than this guy.

“Who are you, the intern?” he asked sarcastically. “Why don’t you go play and let us take care of the actual work around here.”

“Since when does continuing in a less formal manner over a meal mean getting any work done? Last time I used anything approaching a line like that, it was all about getting some privacy.”

He felt Shion fidget a little under his hand, and he swiped his thumb along the back of Shion’s neck a few times; he’d have to apologize later for anything he said to this guy that implied it was something he did with Shion, _especially_ if he referenced anything he actually did with him.

The guy smirked at him instead of backing off.

“Got plenty of experience making something sound like anything other than a hook-up?”

Damn, this asshole was an idiot. He was just making it too easy.

“Oh, that’s _all_ you’re asking for? You had a better chance asking him to lunch. At least then you would have at least gotten the slightest modicum of a possibility of him being polite and accepting. But only asking for sex, you really have no chance in hell.”

“Nezumi,” Shion called to him in a low tone, a warning.

Okuda got a little flustered at that, obviously realizing he’d set that one up. He looked down to Shion is eyes flitting to Nezumi’s hand, which Shion appeared completely comfortable having there, and after a few seconds his expression shifted to a simmering anger.

“Figures you’d settle with some stupid slut. Should have known,” he growled out, obviously just going for taking a cheap stab.

And it had been so long since someone had thrown insults at Nezumi, let alone around Shion that Nezumi had actually forgotten what had happened to Rikiga the day they’d met him.

Which was why he didn’t anticipate Shion pulling away from his hold, rushing toward Okuda and delivering a solid punch to the bridge of his nose. The guy stumbled back with a yelp, his hands covering his face and Shion was about to go in for another one when Nezumi grabbed onto his wrist, his other arm curling around Shion’s waist to pull him back.

Shion fought against the hold for a few seconds, Okuda staring at him in shock.

“Don’t talk about Nezumi like that,” Shion declared in a cold voice, a tone Nezumi forgot he hated so much, hated even more because it was only because of him that Shion ever spoke like that.

Okuda dropped his hand a little and Nezumi saw blood dripping from his nose and Nezumi didn’t bother hiding the grin of satisfaction. But most of his focus was still on how tense Shion was in his grip. His arm had relaxed down to his side, but that was the only indication that he wasn’t as furious as he’d been when he punched Okuda.

Okuda looked like he was about to step closer so Nezumi stepped back before he could, taking Shion with him. And Shion moved with him smoothly, not resisting in the least as though to make an example of how welcoming he was to Nezumi’s touch and movement.

“Leave,” Nezumi commanded. “I doubt he’ll make you stop working with him, but that’s all. Keep to your job and leave him alone.”

Okuda looked between the two of them a few times, then seemed to remember he was bleeding and he stepped back, backing out the door and then turning away to walk away.

Nezumi let Shion go and walked around him to close the door and lock it, before turning to face the shorter man. He looked carefully at Shion, gauging his emotions, making sure that he was letting go of the rage as quickly as he had four years ago.

It seemed to be the case, making Nezumi wonder how Shion could be as unbalanced in handling his anger as he’d been so long ago and before having to deal with so much. Shion was supposed to be better off now than he’d been when they were reunited the first time. But Shion looked up to him, making eye contact before he turned away and walked back toward the kitchen.

Nezumi brought his hand up to brush his hair back but stopped when he caught the sight of blood on his hand, a slight streak down the ridge of his hand, so it would have dripped down from…

Nezumi followed Shion into the kitchen, walking straight to him and reaching out to take hold of his wrist again. Shion turned from where he’d been gathering up the documents they’d spread out over the counter. Nezumi held Shion’s hand up and inspected the cut along the knuckles, blood still dripping out slowly. Nezumi let out a sigh and tugged Shion over toward the sink, turning on the faucet and letting it warm up a bit before holding Shion’s hand under the flow.

Shion stepped in close to him, his eyes down and his shoulders tense. Nezumi extended his arm across Shion’s shoulder’s, leaning over to drop a kiss to his forehead before leaning forward to inspect the gash a little closer now that it was cleaned off. It wasn’t too bad, just a long cut along the top of his knuckles and Nezumi pressed his hand over the skin to get the bleeding to stop.

“Nice hit,” he said nonchalantly, trying to pull Shion out of his head. He really did care too much about everyone else.

“I hate it when people talk down to you like that just because of how you look or what you do,” Shion said in a low voice. He leaned his head to the side to rest against Nezumi’s shoulder. “Why do people do that?”

Nezumi kissed at Shion’s forehead, his hand brushing through soft white hair. “Well, as far as that asshole goes, he’s just a sore loser and didn’t want to accept that you wouldn’t be sleeping with him, no matter how much charm he laid on you.”

“Is that why you’ve been in such a bad mood?” Shion asked.

“Yeah, of course. You were saved from a real loss of patience because I know you had no idea he was interested. But he crossed the line today, so he deals with me. And, apparently, you because he didn’t know to keep his mouth shut.”

Shion looked a bit more upset then, his free hand rubbing at his face. “I can’t believe I punched him.”

“I can. Speaking of which, think we can find a way to get you to doing that faster? I really can’t be following you around making sure you aren’t missing things until they’re too late. Because he deserved to get decked about two hours ago, just today.”

“That’s not funny, Nezumi.” Shion muttered and Nezumi gave him a smirk, not really caring that he couldn’t see it.

“Maybe not the reason because I’m not favorable to anyone thinking they have a chance with you or settling for gawking at you whenever they feel like it, but the result of you being willing to punch someone out is an endgame I can work towards. Let’s just make sure I get some work in with you so you don’t destroy your knuckles again. Didn’t think I’d have to tell you that punching someone in the face means you’re very likely to catch your hand on something that will mess them up.”

“Stop sounding so excited about this,” Shion moved his head away and gave Nezumi a pleading look.

Nezumi let go of Shion’s hand, turned toward him and cupped his cheeks with both hands. “But it’s exciting seeing you standing up for yourself. It’ll never be a bad thing.” He kissed Shion on the lips then, needing a few times to convince Shion to part his lips so Nezumi could deepen it, but he gradually loosened up and relaxed into the kiss.

Shion needed to not worry so much about people who didn’t deserve it. That asshole deserved to get his teeth knocked in and Nezumi would do what he could to make Shion understand that.

Because Shion needed to figure out how to balance out his emotions, needed to be able to not get so completely caught up in his rage that he did something he regretted.

Nezumi couldn’t watch Shion be alright with killing someone again, no matter how quickly it passed. He couldn’t get to that point again because it might truly change him if it did.

That’s all there was to it.

**Author's Note:**

> Didn't finish the one I was going to post today, so you get another No. 6. :D  
> Thanks for reading and hope you enjoy!


End file.
